Big Sand Lake vs Long Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Big Sand Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Long Lake. Both are in Hubbard County, Minnesota.
Both Big Sand Lake and Long Lake sit in Minnesota. A same-state comparison strips out the state-level water-quality regime as a variable: any differences in the readings here are about the lakes themselves, not the agencies sampling them. The readings are close: Big Sand Lake and Long Lake sit within a narrow band of each other on phosphorus, chlorophyll-a and clarity. The per-parameter table below shows where the small differences actually live.
With readings this close, the choice between the two lakes turns on non-water-quality factors: depth, fish species, public access, distance from home. The per-lake pages below cover all of those.
Big Sand Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 23 ft down.
Long Lake
Good clarity, visible to about 11.2 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Big Sand Lake | Long Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 23 ft Better | 11.2 ft |
| Phosphorus | 7 µg/L Better | 10 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 1.7 µg/L Better | 4.5 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | 135 ft | 135 ft |
| Surface Area | 1,639 acres | 1,926 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 16 Better | 14 |
| Trophic State | oligotrophic | mesotrophic |
A green ✓ marks the better value for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better). Surface area and trophic state carry no tick — a bigger lake is not a better lake.
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Verdict
Big Sand Lake and Long Lake read the same on nutrients and algae overall. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Big Sand Lake: 23 ft, Long Lake: 11.2 ft) and what you want from the lake. Big Sand Lake supports more documented fish species.
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Where to stay near Big Sand Lake and Long Lake
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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.